By MIKE SMITH
ATHENS, Ohio -- Despite a traffic jam in the Mid-American conference standings, the Ohio Bobcats entered Friday’s final day of MAC regular season play knowing a senior night win at the Convocation Center would give them a No. 2 seed in the upcoming conference tournament.
Mission accomplished!
All five starters reached . . .
ATHENS, Ohio -- Despite a traffic jam in the Mid-American conference standings, the Ohio Bobcats entered Friday’s final day of MAC regular season play knowing a senior night win at the Convocation Center would give them a No. 2 seed in the upcoming conference tournament.
Mission accomplished!
All five starters reached . . .
. . . double figures and Ohio (19-10, 11-7 MAC) dominated the boards Friday as the Bobcats grabbed that No. 2 seed with a 69-55 win over rival Miami.
The RedHawks (11-20, 4-14 MAC) have struggled mightily through conference play and did not have a road victory prior to Tuesday. However, coach John Cooper’s squad pulled off a major upset against the Akron Zips to notch that elusive road victory in MU’s most recent outing.
The RedHawks came from 13 down in the second half to win that contest and again found themselves down by double digits against Ohio. The visitors, in fact, trailed by 18 points (57-39) with just under five minutes remaining.
Miami did manage to close the gap to seven points at 60-53 in the final two minutes, but OU put the game away by scoring nine of the game’s final 11 points.
Seven of those points came at the foul line where Ohio converted 20 of 24 (83.3%) of its charity tosses. Miami, in contrast, made just 13 of its 24 (54.2%) free throw chances. Ohio freshman center Jason Carter picked up half of his team-high 16 points at the foul line.
Neither team shot the ball particularly well from the field as Miami hit 39.6 percent overall and OU connected on 35.6 percent. However, Ohio capitalized on RedHawk turnovers and also dominated the boards.
Carter alone registered 17 rebounds to complete a strong double-double and a 49-29 Bobcat rebounding advantage included a 16-5 OU edge in offensive caroms.
All that helped Ohio get off 59 shots to 38 for the visitors. The ‘Cats also had the upper hand in some mediocre 3-point shooting, making 7 of 24 while Miami knocked down 4 of 16..
Joining Carter in double figures for OU were Gavin Block (13), Kenny Kaminski (12), Jordan Dartis (11) and Jaaron Simmons (10).
Miami, on the other hand, had just one starter in double figures, Michael Weathers matched his season average with 17 points. Jake Wright came off the bench to score 13 points, hitting three of MU’s four treys along the way. Marcus Weathers just missed a double double, scoring nine points and collecting 11 rebounds.
Although Ohio moved in front less than a minute into the contest, the two teams stayed within a couple possessions of each other through much of the first half. It was a 15-all game with 7:00 left.
Ohio ran off six straight points before Michael Weathers scored on a baseline drive with 3:55 remaining. That, however, turned out to be Miami’s last field goal of the period and OU finished with a 9-2 run.
The last six Bobcat points all came at the foul line as Ohio capitalized on a flurry of RedHawk fouls that included some ragged Miami play. The stretch included a 10-second violation when MU – not under pressure at the time – failed to get the ball across half court in time.
The RedHawks also picked up their second technical foul of the opening period when Michael Weathers was whistled for hanging on the rim following a missed dunk attempt.
After taking a 30-19 lead into the break, Ohio added five quick points for a 35-19 lead and stayed comfortably in front for much of the final frame.
Miami still had one last run left and outscored the hosts 14-4 to close within seven at 60-53 with 1:29 remaining. The Weathers brothers combined for 13 of MU’s 14 points during that stretch.
Both teams registered one more field goal, but Ohio was able to put seven more points on the board from the foul line to give it a 14-point advantage at the final horn.
NEXT: As a No. 2 seed, Ohio earned a bye through first round action and will meet the Bowling Green at Toledo winner in quarterfinal play at 6:30 p.m. Thursday.
Miami, a No. 12 seed, faces Western Michigan Monday (time TBA). The MU-WMU winner will meet No. 4 see Ball State in Thursday's second afternoon session game. That tips off 30 minutes after the end of the noon tilt.
The RedHawks (11-20, 4-14 MAC) have struggled mightily through conference play and did not have a road victory prior to Tuesday. However, coach John Cooper’s squad pulled off a major upset against the Akron Zips to notch that elusive road victory in MU’s most recent outing.
The RedHawks came from 13 down in the second half to win that contest and again found themselves down by double digits against Ohio. The visitors, in fact, trailed by 18 points (57-39) with just under five minutes remaining.
Miami did manage to close the gap to seven points at 60-53 in the final two minutes, but OU put the game away by scoring nine of the game’s final 11 points.
Seven of those points came at the foul line where Ohio converted 20 of 24 (83.3%) of its charity tosses. Miami, in contrast, made just 13 of its 24 (54.2%) free throw chances. Ohio freshman center Jason Carter picked up half of his team-high 16 points at the foul line.
Neither team shot the ball particularly well from the field as Miami hit 39.6 percent overall and OU connected on 35.6 percent. However, Ohio capitalized on RedHawk turnovers and also dominated the boards.
Carter alone registered 17 rebounds to complete a strong double-double and a 49-29 Bobcat rebounding advantage included a 16-5 OU edge in offensive caroms.
All that helped Ohio get off 59 shots to 38 for the visitors. The ‘Cats also had the upper hand in some mediocre 3-point shooting, making 7 of 24 while Miami knocked down 4 of 16..
Joining Carter in double figures for OU were Gavin Block (13), Kenny Kaminski (12), Jordan Dartis (11) and Jaaron Simmons (10).
Miami, on the other hand, had just one starter in double figures, Michael Weathers matched his season average with 17 points. Jake Wright came off the bench to score 13 points, hitting three of MU’s four treys along the way. Marcus Weathers just missed a double double, scoring nine points and collecting 11 rebounds.
Although Ohio moved in front less than a minute into the contest, the two teams stayed within a couple possessions of each other through much of the first half. It was a 15-all game with 7:00 left.
Ohio ran off six straight points before Michael Weathers scored on a baseline drive with 3:55 remaining. That, however, turned out to be Miami’s last field goal of the period and OU finished with a 9-2 run.
The last six Bobcat points all came at the foul line as Ohio capitalized on a flurry of RedHawk fouls that included some ragged Miami play. The stretch included a 10-second violation when MU – not under pressure at the time – failed to get the ball across half court in time.
The RedHawks also picked up their second technical foul of the opening period when Michael Weathers was whistled for hanging on the rim following a missed dunk attempt.
After taking a 30-19 lead into the break, Ohio added five quick points for a 35-19 lead and stayed comfortably in front for much of the final frame.
Miami still had one last run left and outscored the hosts 14-4 to close within seven at 60-53 with 1:29 remaining. The Weathers brothers combined for 13 of MU’s 14 points during that stretch.
Both teams registered one more field goal, but Ohio was able to put seven more points on the board from the foul line to give it a 14-point advantage at the final horn.
NEXT: As a No. 2 seed, Ohio earned a bye through first round action and will meet the Bowling Green at Toledo winner in quarterfinal play at 6:30 p.m. Thursday.
Miami, a No. 12 seed, faces Western Michigan Monday (time TBA). The MU-WMU winner will meet No. 4 see Ball State in Thursday's second afternoon session game. That tips off 30 minutes after the end of the noon tilt.
RSS Feed